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Sunday, January 26, 2014

As I sit here writing this
review the Sidewinder Compact II is in my pocket. It has been there for a few
weeks now and it wont be going anywhere any time soon. Not until something
truly better comes along and that will take a while. It is not just a matter of
getting the latest, brightest LED. The Sidewinder Compact II is a game changing
flashlight.

The first thing to keep in
mind is that this is a Streamlight. That means the quality testing and
standards are beyond average flashlight brands. Streamlight spends hundreds of
thousands of dollars in researching and proof testing their products. Most other
companies, no matter how neat their designs may be or how bright their lights are,
they don’t have those standards of quality. Talking about brightness, lumen
intensity depends on the brand as well. A good example of this is that the 55
lumens of the Sidewinder Compact II are brighter than the 80 lumens of the Olight
i3s EOS when put side by side. Olight and other brands that don’t go for
military and industrial safety contracts can allow themselves to be more “creative”
about the lumen intensity of their products. Not Streamlight. The same thing
happens with Surefire, who’s 100 lumen lights tend to be brighter than some 200
lumen flashlights floating around.

Then there’s the quality of
construction. The Sidewinder Compact II is clearly a tough product. Made of
nylon, it is both solid and light. Impact resistance to 3 meters and water
resistant to 1 meter for 30 minutes. Intended to be used on the feel, everything
about this light looks and feels rugged.

Incredible Versatility

Box Contents

The Sidewinder Compact II is
without a doubt the most versatile light in the market as of right now. It is intended
to be used as a helmet light (comes with the required helmet attachment) , but
in can also be used as a headlamp using the head strap (also included). Thanks
to its 90 degree angle configuration and rotating sturdy steel clip, it can
attach to MOLLE vests, front shirt pockets or neck collars. Of course, it can
be carried in your pocket as well. It may not be the most compact pocket EDC
light but it well compensates for that by being so useful and adaptable.

Using the Sidewinder Compct
II is simple enough. Clicking the rubber dome button on top (silent, remember
its military pedigree) turns the light on. Clicking it again turns it off.
Double clicking engages the strobe mode and pushing and holding cycles through
the four brightness intensities, Low-Medium 1-Medium 2 and High. High is 55
lumens although as explained its comparable to 80 lumens from other brands such
as Olight and Fenix. The runtime for the High mode is 6 hours with one CR123A
battery. The low mode, which is the first one, is a functional 5 lumens. Good
enough for general use and it runs for over 70 hs. The Sidewinder Comapct II C4
LED has good coloration for a white light. Doesn’t seem to be too cold, no
purple or green tint around the edges but a nice neutral white light that feels
very natural. At very close range the light has an uneven hotspot with a dark spot
in the center, but as you move a few inches away this isn’t noticeable. The
light has nice throw and just enough spill for practical purposes thanks to its
smooth reflector.

Mini headstrap I made for the SCII. It fits nicely under the clip

Pulling up and rotating the
knob allows you to rotate between the four different LEDs. The Sidewinder Compact
II has a C4 white LED, a red LED, a blue LED and an infrared LED for night
vision devices. The strobe and intensity modes work the same way in all LEDs.
The red and blue LEDs have a long runtime on low mode, with over 100 hours of
runtime.

CR123A, AA and AAA they all work in the SCII

But the most fascinating thing
about the Sidewinder Comapct two isn’t the choice of LEDs, even if it can be
useful, such as using the LED red to keep your night vision or to keep a low
profile or the military applications of the IR LED. What make the Sidewinder
Compact II a survivalist´s dream is that it works with a single CR123A or AA
battery. The flashlight has a spring loaded insert on the inside which adjusts
to either type of battery. Unofficially speaking, the Sidewinder Compact II
also works with AAA as well. It says nothing about it in the manual but after
trying it out and seeing if it would disengage by hitting it lightly it proved
to work well enough. If a AAA with a bit of juice left is all you have, you
could throw it in, set it on the red LED low mode and you would squeeze some
light out of it. Such versatility is simply fantastic.

Its been a few weeks now
since I started carrying the Sidewinder Compact II as my every day pocket carry
light. Because of its unusual shape, at first I would notice it in my jeans for
a few steps, but thanks to its light weight you soon forget its there. In larger
5.11 pants you don’t ever notice it. I see how the Sidewinder Compact II will
be with me for a long time.

9 comments:

Troy
said...

Thank you for that review. I really like the versatility of this light, especially the fact that you can use different batteries. That said, I see no reason why a military grade light can't have at least 100 lumens, or 200 for that matter? Most modern flashlights do. I would gladly pay a little more for this. You almost had me sold on it, but for that one big drawback.

The reason is that it's not intended to be a weapon light but a goal use light. The 55 lumen do feel like 80 and illuminate better than 100lumen flashlights at a distance thanks to the better throw. clearly to me they valued max runtime over power, but I agree a slightly higher lumen mode would have been better. having said that I find it to be very adequate for most (or I should say all) tasks I've needed it for so far.

A decent review and a decent product. I avoid anything cr123. They are expensive and not as easily found as the A's (double or triple). Plus when it comes to on person EDC a bright tactical is way more preferable. They all have low settings. Admittingly my tactical isn't waterproof, however I have jumped into a pool with mine in my pocket and swam the length of the pool, gotten out and it worked. In my GHB I have a headlamp and two other flashlights (one of them a hand cranker). I just don't see this one as a must replace for any of them. I didn't look at the price but I'd be willing to guess that I bought all my flashlights for the same amount as this one cost.

Hey Troy. In spite of the offcial 55 lumen spec it is pretty bright and it makes great use of the light be keeping a nice hotspot with good throw. For example, compared to a more floody 200 lumen EDC, the 200 lumen light doesnt focus much past 10 meters while the sidewinder compact II does, iluminating just as well or maybe even a tad better on the spot you are pointing at.

Agree with Fernando that hand crankers in general aren't the brightest nor will you get more than 30 minutes of light out of a "cranking session" (usually about a minute or two depending on make and model).

However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't have one in your bag. They aren't that big. They aren't bulletproof but they are extremely fragile either (depending on make and model). They are bright enough for just when you need some light (and not the sun). There are some good ones out there that are worth their salt. I have a few strewn about. Don't have to worry about channging batteries or checking for battery corrosion if they sit with the batteries in them too long (like alot of flashlights). Everyone should have at least one handcranker in their mix.

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Leatherman Charge Ti

Fenix Lights

I love this light. Runs on a single AAA and is capable of big boy lumen output (80 lumens) in a keychain package. Also has low and mid mode for longer runtime.
Fenix PD20
Single CR123 cell. 6 modes including 180 lumen turbo mode.
General Mode: 9 lumens (35hrs) -> 47 lumens (6.5hrs) -> 94 lumens (2.6hrs) -> SOS
Turbo Mode: 180 lumens (1hrs) -> Strobe
15 days of survival use (2 continuous hours per day on the lowest setting)

Thanks for the Positive Reviews!

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